Fairgoers bid farewell to fried food, rides and critters

Friends Darnell Williams, left, Mike Zarbo, center, and Steve Parman were all smiles after each won a large plush toy at the 'Stand the Bottle' game at the San Diego County Fair. Since the fair was open an extra two days, the group of friends was able to coordinate their schedules and visit on the last day. The three plan to donate their toys to charity.
— David Brooks

Friends Darnell Williams, left, Mike Zarbo, center, and Steve Parman were all smiles after each won a large plush toy at the 'Stand the Bottle' game at the San Diego County Fair. Since the fair was open an extra two days, the group of friends was able to coordinate their schedules and visit on the last day. The three plan to donate their toys to charity.
— David Brooks

As the San Diego County Fair wrapped up festivities on Sunday, fairgoers took their final rides on carnival attractions and grabbed the last Krispy Kreme triple cheeseburgers of the season. But left behind were glasses, crutches and a set of dentures.

The mecca for fried treats, giant plush toys and barnyard critters drew 1,457,130 fairgoers since opening day on June 7, fair officials said, after crunching the final numbers on Sunday evening. The attendance was the second highest after 2012, when more than 1.5 million visitors made their way to the Del Mar Fairgrounds.

Some 20,000 of this year’s visitors tried the Krispy Kreme burger, new this year from Chicken Charlie’s, home of “all things deep fried.”

Featuring three burger patties and three cheese slices stuffed between two Krispy Kreme doughnuts, the sandwich could be both dinner and desert for a family. But co-owner Tony Boghosian said most customers finished the entire indulgence on their own.

Fans included toddlers to seniors, Boghosian said, noting that he saw a whip-thin teenage girl polish one off in minutes. On another occasion, a man who had just gotten a pacemaker indulged in the triple decker cheeseburger, deep fried chicken skins and fried cookie dough.

“He said ‘I’m good now. I can eat it,’ ” Boghosian recounted.

Over the monthlong fair, the booth went through 12,000 avocados, 20,000 pineapples and about 100,000 pounds of chicken, Boghosian reported. They also sold 40,000 orders of fried cookie dough, a popular delicacy they reprised from last year.

At other food booths, Dixie’s Donuts fried more than 30,000 mini donuts and Bacon-A-Fair used 15,000 pounds of bacon, and 150 bottles of Jack Daniels for Churros, the fair reported.

At the California Rare Fruit Growers’ booth, San Diego gardeners displayed a more health-conscious take on giant food. The booth showcased some unusual varieties of produce, including jack fruit, a watermelon-sized pod with spiky skin and creamy yellow flesh, and grapefruit-sized avocados that were a hit with fairgoers.

“People come over and almost drool,” said rare fruit grower Carol Graham, of Encinitas. Homegrown varieties are also big on flavor, she said. “If you want the best flavored fruits you’ve ever had, many times you’ll need to grow it,” she said.

Size also mattered when it came to carnival prizes. Children left the fairgrounds Sunday with the spoils of victory, oversized doughnut pillows slung around their necks or carrying a barrel-sized “Minion” character from the film “Despicable Me.”

Oversized animals were also a perennial attraction, with “White Mountain” a giant steer, appearing at the show with a 14-foot long Florida alligator.

Del Mar, CA USA, July 1st, 2013 Aundreah Coye, 16, from Escondido High's Future Farmers of America (FFA) waits in line with her 133 lb. Hampshire Cross lamb named "Bob" during the junior livestock auction at the San Diego County Fair.
— David Brooks

Del Mar, CA USA, July 1st, 2013 Aundreah Coye, 16, from Escondido High's Future Farmers of America (FFA) waits in line with her 133 lb. Hampshire Cross lamb named "Bob" during the junior livestock auction at the San Diego County Fair.
— David Brooks

Agricultural students showcased their own efforts to supersize their livestock.

Amid the squealing cacophony of the swine barn, Poway High School student Alex Osmun, 16, said his pig, “Joe Dirt,” weighed in at about 60 pounds when he bought him in the spring. Months later, the swine made his fair debut at 268 pounds, earning Osmun a blue ribbon.

“It’s just amazing how fast they grow,” he said.

As the fair drew to a close, the guest services department scrambled to reunite forgotten items with their owners through its lost and found office.

There, 86 credit cards awaited pickup, along with 26 cell phones, 53 pieces of jewelry, 92 pairs of glasses, 15 wallets and 64 sets of keys. This year, fairgoers also lost a partial set of dentures, a pair of crutches and a bonsai plant.

Not all was lost, though. Guest services supervisor Gail Tompkins returned two lost wedding rings to their owners this year.